Anyone At All
by Wanna Bet-the original
Summary: AU: What Bella had met Edward under different circumstances? What if she had lost her mother to one of his kind? Would they have still fallen in love? Will Edward be able to convince her he isn't a monster? Will he be able to protect her?T:some violence
1. Prologue: Phoenix

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns **_**Twilight **_**and all its characters. I just came up with the situation they are in.**

**A/N: So, I came up with this concept while rereading the series before Breaking Dawn came out. Don't ask me where it came from. Unlike **_**Something to Live For**_**, it didn't come from something in the book exactly.**

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Prologue: _Phoenix_

It was my favorite kind of day. The sun was hanging high in the cloudless sky. The birds were singing in the few trees that lined our street as I walked home. I didn't anything would be able to touch me on this day.

I pulled my key out of my pocket and slipped it in the deadbolt. The force of that action caused the door to open on its own. The lock had been broken.

"Mom?" I called, setting my key on the table by the door and setting my book bag on the floor beside the table.

I heard a small thud from upstairs.

"Mom?" I said, climbing the stairs to my mother's room where I was sure the sound had come from. There was an alarm pad in her room. I knew I could press the panic button if I needed to.

Mom's bedroom door at the end of the hall was ajar. I inched forward slowly, still afraid and unsure of what I would find.

When I got there, I pushed the door open slightly and I saw something that shocked me.

There was a man crouched over my mother's lifeless looking body. His lips were pressed to her neck.

He looked up at me when I entered and smiled, his teeth glistening with my mother's blood.

I was frozen in shock before I found the strength and composure to reach on the wall next to me and hit the panic button.

The shrill of the alarm stopped the predators advance toward me. He was out the window before I could blink.

I ran to my mother's side, but she was already gone, her body drained of blood, her skin pale.

As I began to cry, I could hear the sirens in the distance. A weird part of me was glad there was a mountain lion problem in the area.

No one would believe the truth of this.

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**Sorry it was short. But it's only the prologue. Can't wait to hear from you.**


	2. One: Forks

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns **_**Twilight **_**and all its characters. I just came up with the situation they are in.**

**A/N: I forgot to mention last chapter that the title of this story is from the song "Anyone at All" by Carole King. I posted a link to the song on my profile.**

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The official cause of my mother's death was that she was mauled and killed by a mountain lion. That didn't explain how her body had been drained of blood while there was none of the floor of her room. But that at least explained her injuries.

I knew the truth. I knew it hadn't been a mountain lion. But who was going to listen to a 17 year old girl who insisted her mother had actually been killed by a man who had then drank her blood?

I couldn't remember anything about the man except his eyes. They had been blood red as they looked at me. And they looked hungry. They haunted me everywhere I went. I also remembered the look on my lifeless mother's face. It would haunt me forever.

After the funeral I had gotten on a plane to go and live with my dad. I had no desire to stay in Phoenix. All it held for me now were depressing memories. So I figured I would move to a town whose weather would match my mood.

My father the chief of police in a small, rainy town called Forks. Unless you live there, you've never heard of it. It's located in the Olympic Peninsula of Washington State. It rains there almost every day. And since the sun would never shine for me again, and sunshine would only remind me of that day, I went to Forks as happily as I could be.

My father met me at the airport in Port Angeles. This was the closest major airport. It was an hour drive to Forks. I could see him carefully evaluating my appearance when I met him on the tarmac. I hadn't bothered to change after the funeral. I was still in my black knee-length dress with a mock-turtleneck and no sleeves. My hair was still in a single plait down my back. He took my carryon bag from me and then pulled me into a one-armed hug, kissing the top of my head.

Once we got into the cruiser, Charlie said, "I am sorry I couldn't make it down for the funeral Bells. Your mother meant a lot to me, but I needed to stay here for work and to get things ready for you. Did you get the flowers I sent?"

"Yeah Cha-Dad. They were lovely." I mumbled, not looking at him, but continuing to stare out the window at nothing in particular of the passing scenery. I couldn't call him Charlie to his face. I always had to catch myself before I did.

"I've already registered you for high school. You can start as soon as you are ready. And I bought you a car, well, a truck actually, from Billy Black. You remember Billy, right?"

"Yeah," I mumbled, not really paying attention. I vaguely remembered Billy from my summers in Forks. He had a nice face. Beyond that I drew a blank, but I wasn't really in the mood for a trip down memory lane.

Charlie said a few more things, but I didn't pay attention and his voice eventually became a dull murmur before ceasing all together. We rode in silence the rest of the way to Forks.

Before I knew it we had pulled in front of Charlie's old white house. I saw the oldest truck I think I had ever seen parked in the driveway. I didn't have the mental capacity left to think anything about the truck. When Charlie asked me, I simply told him it was nice.

He followed me with my bags up the stairs to my room. It hadn't changed much over the years. I had him place the bags on the bed and then he gracefully bowed out of the room, clearly out of his element with the emotional state I was in.

I was glad for this. There was only one person in the world I wanted to talk to about what I was going through. And her absence was the reason I was going through it.

I sat on the bed between the two bags and I could feel the tears begin to well up in my eyes. I leaned back on my bed, the braid feeling like an uncomfortable lump on my spine. But I didn't care. I simply began to sob. I cried uncontrollably for an unknown length of time until I finally fell asleep.

And my dreams were haunted by a pair of bright red eyes.

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**Ask and ye shall receive. I love you all too much to not do what you ask me to do, you know that?**

**So since I did my part, you have to do yours. Review it and tell me what you think!**

**I won't be updating again for a few days. But fear not, I will come back and get right back on the ball!**


	3. Two: Flashbacks

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns **_**Twilight **_**and all its characters. I just came up with the situation they are in.**

**A/N: Hey guys. Sorry for the delay. I tried to get this up last night, but just couldn't make it. I got distracted watching Michael Phelps swim for gold #6 and cheering for Nastia Liukin and Shawn Johnson (WAY TO GO GIRLS!!)  
You'll have to forgive my description of Forks High…my first book is on loan so I can't fact check. This is just what I remember, k?**

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I didn't go to school the next day. My absence from school caused Charlie to miss work. I existed in the house in an awkward state with Charlie there, both of us trying to stay out of the others way to avoid talking to one another. Staying home did absolutely nothing for keeping my mind off my grief. If anything, it made it worse because I had nothing else to focus on. So I resolved to go start school the next day. It was a Thursday tomorrow. I would be able ease myself back into it without only two days ahead of me instead of a whole five.

Charlie was already in his uniform at the breakfast table the next morning when I stumbled down in my pajamas. He was trying to look like he was nonchalantly reading the paper, but I caught him sneaking sideways glances at me when he thought I wasn't looking. I wasn't sure if he was trying to decide if I had decided not to go to school again or if he was just unsure what to say.

I poured my cereal and lightly coated it with milk before sitting at the table with him. The only sound between us came from the metal on china scraping from our breakfast and the faint rustling of newspaper.

When I had finished, after eating the entire meal in silence, I mumbled that I should go get ready for school. Charlie informed me that he had to get to the station and wished me well on my first day of school. He told me he didn't expect me to have any problems finding the place.

He was right about that. After I showered and dressed I grabbed my school bag and keys and headed out to my new, or at least new to me, truck. A light mist was falling from the sky and I sighed as I felt it on my skin. The precipitation in Forks and the lack of appearances from the sun were going to take an insane amount of getting used to.

I got to the high school without a hitch. There were very large signs on the road informing me about every half mile that I was a half a mile closer to Forks High School. It was a small collection of buildings with very large numbers painted on them. Over the door of the building numbered "1", the words "FRONT OFFICE" were stenciled in a way that reminded me of the military. It seemed fitting. Where some children were punished by being shipped off to military school, I was being punished by the cosmos by being shipped off to Forks.

I killed the engine of my truck as soon as I pulled it into the Visitor's Parking space. I knew I would have to move my truck, but I didn't feel like getting any wetter, and by extension colder, than absolutely necessary.

When I entered the building, I was almost immediately at the front desk were a little woman with hair a color red that rarely occurs in nature was sitting, staring at a computer screen through her reading glasses.

I was hit with the sudden flash of fiery red hair. I shook my head, but the vision, so startling, caused me to lose what little balance I had whenever I moved, and I had to grip the edge of the desk to keep myself from falling.

"Are you all right dear?" the woman behind the desk asked.

"Fine," I choked out, "just tripped." I straightened up, trying not to focus on the image in my head just yet and flashed a fake, but enthusiastic smile at the woman.

"This is my first day of school. I really am not sure where I should be."

"You must be Isabella Swan." The woman said knowingly, her eyes warm and her smile kind. "I was sorry to hear about your mother. I hope you will be able to regain some happiness here in Forks with your Dad."

_Not likely_, I wanted to reply to the woman. Instead, I gave her one of the smiles I was starting to perfect in an effort for everyone to believe I was happier than I actually was.

The woman, whose name I ascertained to be Mrs. Cope, gave me a class schedule and a map of the school, pointing out to me the fastest way to get to all my classes. She also handed me a slip of paper I needed to have signed by each of my teachers, no doubt to make sure I actually attended the classes, and bring back to her at the end of the day. She wished me well again and I smiled politely until I exited the building and was out of her view.

I got back into my truck, the mist having turned into a light rain in my time indoors, and moved my truck to the student lot that Mrs. Cope had pointed out to me. It was quickly filling up, but I managed to snag a parking space. My eye was caught by a shiny, silver Volvo, the only new looking car in the lot. I vaguely wondered who drove that. I wasn't aware of any flashy money in Forks.

But my curiosity was soon doused by the sound of the first bell ringing. I frantically looked about myself to find my first class. After locating the building it was in, I made a beeline for it, forcing myself to be ready to start my day.

Deep in the corner of my mind I remembered driving down the road in Phoenix at night days earlier and seeing what I had thought was a woman with fiery red hair running in the wooded area I was beside. It wouldn't have meant anything to me, if I hadn't seen the flash of ruby red in her eyes when she turned to look at me under a streetlamp.

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**Opinions? I know that Bella is a bit courser than normal, but she is grieving and unsure of things because she can't remember things from her mother's murder. And she hates Forks. Sorry if you think Bella is OOC. I want to know what you are thinking. So REVIEW!!**

**AND YAY MICHAEL PHELPS FOR GOLD #7!!**


	4. Three: Lunchtime

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns **_**Twilight **_**and all its characters. I just came up with the situation they are in.**

**A/N: Hey guys. I wanted to get this out earlier today, but had some stuff I had to get done. I am sorry it is so late, again. I am starting this chapter with 20 minutes until Michael Phelps' 8****th**** Gold Medal Swim…let's see if I finish before he starts…**

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I made it through my morning without much complaint. I had made some new "friends", one of whom, Mike I think his name was, was starting to remind me more of a golden retriever than a human being. I ate lunch with some of them, sitting next to a girl named Jessica who I had had a couple classes with that morning.

Not really paying attention to what was being discussed at the table (some trip to the beach at the local Reservation of La Push that I would probably get invited to, but would have no interest in actually going on – I would much rather wallow in my own self pity, which was becoming a regular habit of mine), I casually glanced around the cafeteria at the other tables.

That's the first time I saw them. They stood out from the other students, pale and beautiful. Hauntingly beautiful. I blinked and shook my head, a flash of a face behind my closed lids that looked so familiar and yet that of a stranger.

I looked back at them, almost unable to look away. Their beauty was mesmerizing, hypnotizing in a way. There were five of them, 3 boys and two girls. Two blondes, two dark haired, and one with hair a shade of bronze that you rarely saw anymore. It was a color you really only saw on characters in movies set at the turn of the 20th century.

The blonde girl was beautiful, like a supermodel. The dark haired boy who sat next to her was built like a bouncer and could have easily been her bodyguard if I went to high school in Los Angeles and not Forks. The blonde boy sat next to the short, spiky, dark haired girl who looked pixie-like. The bronze hair boy sat alone at the table. While the couples, as it was plain that they are, sat together, he sat away from them, not meeting the gaze of anyone in the cafeteria.

Jessica noticed the direction of my stare and chuckled to herself before answering the question I didn't dare to ask.

"Those are the Cullens. They moved here about two years ago. Their dad is some bigwig doctor at the hospital. He and his wife adopted all the kids, because apparently she can't have any. The doctor isn't much older than they are."

"They're related?"

"The blondes are. That's Rosalie and Jasper Hale. The dark haired ones are Emmett and Alice Cullen."

"And the other?"

I looked over just in time to see her blush a little as she giggled before looking up from under her lashes at the boy left unnamed at the table of impossibly beautiful strangers.

"That's Edward. While the others are _together_," she sneered the word, her small town disdain for the fact that they all lived together unmarried obvious in her tone and expression, "he apparently doesn't date. Apparently none of us are good enough to tempt him. Rumours are spreading that he is…well…you know."

Jessica was quiet for a while. As she realized I wasn't go to reply to her, she turned her attentions back to the rest of the table. Almost in the same instant she looked away from him, his head snapped up and our eyes met across the room.

He looked puzzled, troubled, and it wasn't just the dark circles under his eyes that made him look this way. The look of confusion on his face matched that of someone who knew that they should know something, but just couldn't seem to figure it out. I had seen the look on my classmates faces in math classes. I never knew enough to think I_ should_ be able to do it.

Our eyes remained locked for a few more seconds before he looked away from me to his dark haired sister Alice as she rose from her seat and glided to the trash can, throwing a full tray of uneaten food into it. She glided out the back doors of the cafeteria instead of returning to the table.

Just then the bell signaling the end of lunch rang and the four remaining got up and glided with as much grace as their sister to the cans, each of them throwing away a full tray of uneaten food. I caught Edward trying to catch another glimpse at me, but as soon as he found me looking at him, he cast his eyes away.

I thought nothing of it. People had been gawking at me all day and I had stopped noticing. And I wouldn't have noticed him if it wasn't for the strange shade of his eyes. They were dark butterscotch…ochre…amber paint mixed with too much black. They puzzled and mesmerized me and if Mike hadn't nudged my arm and offered to escort me to my next class, which he had also, I probably would have stayed at the table, lost in his eyes, a strange color between gold and black.

I walked without thinking to Biology and when I walked in, I saw him sitting next to the only open seat in the class. I would have to sit next to him.

Something magnetic was pulling me to him, but the red eyes in the back of my mind seemed to warning me something was wrong.

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**YAY MICHAEL PHELPS!!**

**So, she has finally seen Edward. Thoughts on her reactions? What is going to happen?? REVIEW TO FIND OUT!!**


	5. Four: Biology

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns **_**Twilight **_**and all its characters. I just came up with the situation they are in.**

**A/N: Hey guys. I totally meant to this week, but I moved and started training for a new job which lasted all week and just had so much to do that I was always either working or sleeping. I am so sorry. I know I let you all down. So I hope this will make up for it!**

**A/N 2: And yes, I know last chapter his eyes were still rather golden, but I decided when he smelled Bella it would make him thirstier faster.**

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With little surprise to me, Mr. Banner, the Bio teacher, instructed me to sit next to the seat next to Edward Cullen. I was excited and frightened by this prospect. I was drawn to him as if he was an unstoppable force pulling me, an immovable object, toward him.

When I took the seat beside him, I first noticed his strange behavior. Almost as soon as I sat down, his entire body tensed and he seemed to almost instinctively lean away from me. I discreetly sniffed myself. I smelled fine.

His eyes flashed toward me. And that's when I saw something that truly frightened me.

They were black. Onyx.

I had a flash of memory. A figure crouched over my mother, feeding on her. The strangely beautiful face looking up at me and grinning, his teeth dripping with my mother's blood, his eyes black.

The same color black that Edward's were now.

I felt myself begin to hyperventilate. I was fairly certain, though I had never had one before, that I was having a panic attack. I clutched the edge of the desk trying to calm myself down. I looked around myself and saw the rest of the class staring at me. I couldn't care enough to think about the impression this was leaving in their minds of me on my first day. All I could think of was that I needed air.

I needed to be able to breathe.

"Bella?" I heard my name as a pair of arms gripped around me. I looked up to see my own personal Lassie gripping me. If I had been able to breathe, or form coherent thoughts for that matter, I probably would have asked him if Timmy had fallen in the well again.

Before I could comprehend what was going on in the sea of faces surrounding me, I felt myself in the cool air outside, a light mist on my face. That calmed me down. But I was still moving. Moving toward the front office building. No doubt, Lassie was taking me to the nurse.

"Mike," I said, finding my voice, "put me down. I can walk."

He stopped and seemed to hesitate a bit before following my wish. When he put me on my feet, I closed my eyes and slowly inhaled.

But that was a mistake, because I was instantly met with Edward's black eyes and the terror they caused within me.

I knew what Edward was. He was a monster, like the thing that killed my mom, my rock and my support. Judging from what I had seen at lunch today, his entire family were monsters. And one of them was a doctor! I wonder if that made it easier for him to feed. But I also wondered why no one noticed that his patients always died.

But Jessica, the small town gossip that she was, would have undoubtedly mentioned that Dr. Cullen's patients never survived while in the good doctor's care. Surely she would have mentioned they always died in circumstances where they had been apparently mauled by a bear in the hospital.

Everything in my head was swirling, so when I opened my eyes, it didn't surprise me my surrounding were swirling too. I felt myself falling.

But I was thankful everything went black before I could feel the thud.

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**I am a Mike fan, especially with Welch playing him (because I think Michael Welch is gorgeous), but I wanted to call him Lassie so badly. Take no offense Mike fans.**

**Ahh, it's short, I know. But, I promise that the updates will be more regular. Some interesting things are coming up. While I am following Twilight storyline, I am deviating a little.**

**Sorry for the wait, but I swear I am back, but not as much as summer allowed me to be. But it should never be as long away as this was. Review, and let me know you forgive me!!**


	6. Five: Hospital

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns **_**Twilight **_**and all its characters. I just came up with the situation they are in.**

**A/N: Hey guys. I wanted to write this last night, but the night before last, I almost gave myself a concussion (very Bella of me), and had a headache and couldn't write last night. So, now I have one hour before I have to be at work. Here it goes…**

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Just from the feeling of the surface beneath me, I knew I wasn't on the ground anymore. I also was pretty sure I wasn't in the nurse's office. So when I opened my eyes and saw the glaring fluorescent light above me, the generic white walls surrounding me, and the tube coming from my arm, I figured I was in the hospital. I cringed slightly at the sight of the IV.

I hated needles.

I was familiar enough with hospitals, being the klutz that I was, to know where to search for the call button. I found it and pressed it, and soon a rather round woman came into the room.

"Oh, good dear, you're awake. Your father and the doctor will be very pleased to hear that. You gave some people a right, good scare. I'll let the doctor come in and examine you before letting your father in."

"Thanks." I wasn't sure how Charlie would take me being in the hospital. I wasn't sure how protective he would get of me. I probably wasn't going to school tomorrow, if his tendency to overreact was the same as it always had been.

The nurse bustled out of the room. I leaned back on the bed and stared at the ceiling, amusing myself by finding patterns in the dots in the ceiling tiles similar to a way children find pictures in the clouds. My fantasies were interrupted when I heard the click of the door handle closing behind someone.

I looked across the room and was met by the image of a godlike figure walking toward me, the kind of figure you see painted in ancient frescoes and carved by the masters. His hair was blonde and his eyes were the strangest shade of gold. They complemented his hair quite nicely.

But they frightened me. The color of his eyes belonged in the same family as the Cullens' had this afternoon.

"Hello, Bella. I am Dr. Carlisle Cullen. How are you feeling?"

His name hit me like an oncoming van (**A/N: Chuckle with me)**. Cullen. He was a Cullen. He was like Edward. He was a monster. He was the monster of a doctor.

He took my shocked expression the wrong way. "Don't worry, you'll feel just fine very soon. Just take slow, calming breaths."

I continued staring at him bewildered. He reached for my free wrist (the one on the arm without the IV), and I quickly pulled it away before he could touch me.

He stared at me, his hand frozen in place, hovering over the place where my hand used to be. He seemed puzzled by me, and I noticed the expression closely matched the expression his "son" had given me across the cafeteria today.

"I'm not going to hurt you Bella. I just need to make some notes for your chart."

I continued to stare at him, my hand unmoving, my body unmoving.

"I'd like to see my dad." I whispered softly. I didn't want to stay in the same room as this monster, but I knew the chances of getting him to leave were slightly better than my chances of leaving.

His eyes were still bewildered as he nodded. He turned and walked out of the room. A minute or so later, Charlie entered the room, relief in his face. I saw over his shoulder as the door closed behind him, Dr. Cullen and Edward deep in conversation at the nurse's station. I wondered what they were talking about.

No doubt, me. I wasn't usually this conceited, but I was the common link right now.

Charlie pulled a chair up to my bedside and took the hand I had replaced on the bed in Dr. Cullen's absence.

"So," I said, trying to sound casual, "this going back to school thing. Not the best decision I ever made."

He chuckled at my joke. "Try again Monday?"

"Sure." I agreed. While I knew my absence tomorrow would only fuel gossip, I didn't like the idea of seeing Edward Cullen again.

But the scariest part was also that I didn't want to be away from him.

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**I hope you liked it. Time for me to go to my real job now. I have a poll up in my profile about this story and Edward's POV. Go vote, I want your opinion!**

**Also, don't forget to review this chapter. I know it was another short one, but I had to get going. I promise to write more tomorrow. Until then, I remain your faithful servant, WB.**


	7. Six: The Good Doctor

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns **_**Twilight **_**and all its characters. I just came up with the situation they are in.**

**A/N: WOW! I am actually updating when I said I would! Shock face! So, I epically failed at my job last night, but it was my first night, so hopefully I will get better.**

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I thought, maybe, that I could get out of the hospital without encountering Dr. Cullen again. Maybe a nurse could discharge me or something. But, apparently, Lassie had failed to catch me when I swooned and I had hit my head on the pavement. I had a concussion and had to be kept overnight for observation.

And the worst part for me was that Charlie wasn't allowed to stay with me. Now, I am not one for needing my dad around all the time. Even when I lived with my…when I lived with Renee, I was rather independent. But I felt like my father was the only thing that could save me from the monster I had as a doctor.

Unfortunately, Charlie said his goodbyes to me at 9 pm that night, promising me he would be back as early as they would let him in to take me home. After he left, I went back to staring at the ceiling.

A small shiver travelled up my spine as I heard my door click open and then close. I didn't have to look down to know who it was. But I did and my suspicions were correct. My number was up. I was going to die.

Dr. Cullen was walking toward me and I tried in vain to shrink away. He didn't smile maniacally as the one that had killed my…Renee had. He looked at me in a confusion that was borderline bewilderment.

"Bella," he spoke my name with a certain reverence, a respect I had not expected.

"Please don't come near me. I know what you are and if you take one more step I will scream."

He halted, but his hand extended in the direction of the chair my father had vacated only minutes before this.

"May I please sit down? I just want to talk. I promise, I won't hurt you."

I stared at his tragically beautiful face while I deliberated. Something about him, perhaps the eyes I found so terrifying, seemed so warm and inviting, like I should trust him. But at the same time, the rational part of my mind was screaming at me, questioning what good the promise of a monster was.

Maybe it was the bump on my head, but I went, uncharacteristically, against the rational part of my mind and gestured to Dr. Cullen to have a seat. My grip tightened on the call buzzer as his perfect form sat in the chair.

His gaze never left mine as he made every motion and even after he sat, we stared at each other in a long silence before he broke it.

"Bella, what happened to your mother?"

This was not the question I had been expecting him to ask. Actually, this was far from it. I tripped over my own thoughts as I tried to remember. Not how she died – that fact was in the forefront of my mind always. I was having trouble remembering the public story, the official ruling on how my mother had died.

"She was mauled by a mountain lion." I repeated almost robotically.

"Bella, how did your mother really die?"

I looked at him. He knew that I knew. And somehow, he also knew that my mother hadn't been killed by a mountain lion.

"My mother was murdered…by someone like you."

I couldn't look at Dr. Cullen as I said this last part, because a small part of me wanted to never do anything that would hurt this man.

When I looked back up at him, his eyes were kind, much kinder than they had any right to be. My shock must have shown on my face.

"We had our suspicions. But I need you to trust me about something, Bella. We are different from the monster that killed your mother. You can trust us. Now get some sleep, you have had a long day."

He exited the room without another word or look in my direction. I looked back up at the ceiling as I tried to fall asleep.

That night my dreams were haunted as usual. But this time, the stranger bending over my mother's lifeless body had the face of Carlisle Cullen.

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**So, I hope you liked it. Don't forget to vote in the poll on my profile. Right now, if the answer that is winning keeps winning, I am going to write the piece simultaneously. And don't forget to review this chapter. I know it's short, but to make up for it I will probably post another one today.**


	8. Author's Note

**Hey guys. **

**I have a started Edward's POV of Anyone at All. It's called Where Do I Begin?. Check it out!**

**Lots of Love-  
Wannabet-theoriginal**


	9. Seven: House Arrest

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns **_**Twilight **_**and all its characters. I just came up with the situation they are in.**

**A/N: So, hopefully you all have got a chance to check out **_**Where Do I Begin?**_**. It's going to be Edward's POV on this story. It has started out kinda slow, but will get better, I promise. Now here is your promised second update of the day:**

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I was discharged from the hospital at 9 am the next morning. Charlie took me home in the cruiser, and I was too out of it from my restless night to be embarrassed about it. As soon as I got home, I went upstairs and fell into bed to sleep.

I woke up hours later; 5 hours I discovered when I checked the clock on my nightstand, and went downstairs to get myself some food. I was rather hungry, having not eaten anything but hospital food for almost 24 hours. When I got to the top of the stairs I could hear noises coming from our living room and from the sounds of the announcers, it was some sort of sporting event.

Charlie was still there.

"Dad?" I asked as I entered the living room.

He quickly scrambled for the remote and turned down the volume. "Oh, Bella, I'm sorry , I thought I was being quiet. I didn't mean to wake you."

"Dad, don't worry, you didn't wake me. I came down because I was hungry."

"Oh, you want me to get you something?"

I mentally cringed. I hadn't forgotten Charlie's lack of cooking ability from my summer's spent here. "No, that's okay. I'll just get some cereal."

I went into the kitchen and got a bowl and the only box of cereal in the house then doused what I had poured into the bowl with some milk out of the refrigerator. Then I went back into the living room and sat on the opposite end of the couch from my dad.

"How are you feeling?" he asked as I took my first bite of cereal.

I swallowed and answered. "Fine. My head hurts a little bit, but I am going to take a painkiller as soon as I finish eating this."

He nodded silently as he turned his attention back to the TV. It was some sort of baseball game.

"You know, Dad, you could have gone into work today."

"No, I couldn't have. Dr. Cullen said I shouldn't let you stay by yourself for at least 48 hours. And I need you to tell me if you feel dizzy. Or your vision gets blurry."

I nodded silently as I took another bite.

My father and I sat in silence as the game continued. After an unmarked amount of time passed, an hour I noted looking at the clock, the phone began to ring.

"I'll get it." I said, getting up before Charlie could, taking my empty bowl with me to put in the sink.

I picked up the receiver and stretched the cord to the sink to place the bowl in as I greeted the unknown caller.

"Hello?"

"Bella? It's Mike. How are you feeling?"

I didn't even think long enough to figure out how Lassie had gotten my phone number. Forks was too small of a town for the chief of police to worry about having an unlisted number. I wondered if the phone company even offered it as a service.

"Hi Mike. Yes, my head aches a little bit, but nothing unmanageable."

"Good, I am glad to hear it. Sorry about letting you fall."

"No problem Mike. It all happened so fast, you couldn't have caught me. And I asked you to put me down, remember?"

"Yeah. I was calling because I was wondering if you were feeling well enough to go to La Push with me and some of the kids from school tomorrow?"

I was caught. It was either stay home all day with my dad and be the subject of side glances waiting for me to faint or go with the kids from school and be the subject of stares, but not be hovered over. Charlie would never let me go. But it was worth a shot.

"Hold on, let me ask my dad."

"Okay."

I placed the phone receiver on the counter and walked into the doorway of the living room.

"Hey Dad?"

"Who was it?"

"It's Mike Newton. From school. He wants to know if I can go to La Push with him and some of the other kids in my grade."

"Tomorrow?"

"Yeah."

"I don't know Bells. It may be too soon."

"Please Dad. It's bad enough I passed out at school and couldn't go today. I need to be normal."

He deliberated, but I could see I was winning.

"All right," he finally conceded. "But I want you to be extra careful. And I am going to call down to Billy tonight and let him know your coming. That way someone will know what to do if anything happens."

"Thanks Dad." I said, smiling.

I went back into the kitchen and picked up the receiver again.

"Mike? I'm in."

* * *

**Slow/uneventful, but necessary. That is how I describe this chapter. I don't know if I will get another update in tonight. If I do, it will probably be on Where Do I Begin?. I would promise you at least one more chapter on both of them, but I just found out I have to watch a child tomorrow and therefore have to childproof my apartment. **

**And I know that Author's Note was a tease...sorry.**

**REVIEW!!**


	10. Eight: La Push

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns **_**Twilight **_**and all its characters. I just came up with the situation they are in.**

**A/N: Here is the update on this story for today. Hopefully I will get on in on **_**Where Do I Begin? **_**also. I would have gotten one in earlier, but I had to work today and then went on the greatest shopping adventure in the history of mankind.**

* * *

The next morning when I woke up, I looked out my window into the driveway. The cruiser was gone. Charlie had followed my advice and gone fishing with those guys from the station like he would have every other Saturday. I had told him last night that I wanted to live his life as normally as possible, the exact way that he had before I had come to Forks. I didn't want him to change his ways to accommodate me. I would rather change my ways to accommodate him.

I showered and ate breakfast. I heard a horn honk as I gave myself one more onceover in the mirror in the hall before going out the front door to see Mike's blazer parked in the street waiting for me. He had agreed to since I technically wasn't supposed to for another 24 hours.

He drove us to the camping equipment store his parents owned and operated on the outskirts of town. There were already several people waiting for us in the parking lot. Once we figured out the driving situations, we headed out the highway toward La Push. I was sitting in the back because Jessica had asked me if she could ride in the front seat. I had willingly obliged, not really wanting to talk to anyone.

I leaned my head against the window and the cool glass felt good. I let myself drift off when I re-awoke I could see the small houses of La Push whizzing past us. We finally arrived at First Beach and began unloading all the cars. It wasn't raining yet, but it definitely looked like it could start at any minute.

A couple of the boys started a driftwood fire, which was interesting to watch as the flames changed color because of the salt on the wood. Not too soon after our arrival, a couple of boys from the local reservation came to join our party.

Mike introduced all of us, and one of the boys' gaze lingered on me when Mike named me. Then, what appeared to be the de facto leader of the boys introduced them all. The one who stared at me was named Jacob.

That triggered my memory. I had met Jacob before. He was Billy Black's kid, and Billy was Charlie's best friend. I had met him years ago, back when I had been young enough to not find Forks summers with Charlie objectionable.

I smiled warmly at him and he returned my smile with one of his own. When Mike led the majority of the others away from the group to go explore the beach, Jacob took the seat he had vacated.

"I am surprised you remember me. I couldn't have been more than 7 or 8 the last time you saw me." Jake said.

"Honestly, I didn't remember you until you were named. You have changed a lot. But it's good to see you."

"You too. I'm sorry about your mom. Billy told me. It's rough to lose a parent, but probably even worse when you are as close to them as you were to your mom. When my mom died, it was really hard for us all, but hardest on my sisters."

"How are Rachel and Rebecca?" I asked, the names coming back to me, though I couldn't recall knowing them before.

"Good. They don't live around here anymore. They moved off here as soon as they could manage it. I think the memories of mom and the ghosts around every corner scared them away."

"I can understand that."

"How are you adjusting to Forks?"

"As well as can be expected. I really miss my mom though. And I can't seem to escape the nightmares of my mother's death. It's like a big horror story."

"You like horror stories?" He looked around him. The few left in our midst weren't paying any attention to us.

"Kind of." I admitted, not sure where this line of questioning was going.

"I can tell you a really good one."

* * *

**Another shorty, I know...but I liked the cliffy and I had to stop writing to go to a meeting for my work tonight. I won't be writing another chapter of this or it's companion tonight because I have a headache and have to be somewhere early tomorrow. Hope you enjoyed this one. REVIEW!!**


	11. Nine: Afraid?

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns **_**Twilight **_**and all its characters. I just came up with the situation they are in.**

**A/N: Sorry, I meant to update this story yesterday, but as many of you probably read on **_**Where Do I Begin?**_** I had one of those days where everything went wrong. I am getting some rain from the hurricanes and it's causing my roof to leak. So not fun…but here is your update nonetheless. Maybe it will make your day brighter…**

* * *

My head was still reeling. And it had nothing to do with the concussion.

As I laid on my bed listening to Rooney, I tried not to think about the Quileute legends Jacob had told me that morning. Stories he seemed to scoff at the plausibility of.

Stories I found all too true.

My suspicions about the Cullens had been confirmed. I knew they were the "cold ones" from Jacob's stories. I wondered if that made his legends about the wolf-men true also. Did I really live in a world of mythical monsters?

I shook my head, my eyes closed, trying to dismiss these thoughts. But every time I tried to think of something else, my thoughts found themselves stumbling back to the Cullens. One Cullen in particular.

The image of Edward Cullen did not leave my mind.

As if to keep him there longer, the song suddenly changed on the CD. It was a song I knew well, but took me off guard when I heard it in this context.

The male lead singer asked me a single question, and Edward Cullen's lips in my mind formed the same question as the singer spoke:

_Are you afraid of me?_

I sat bolt upright and caused the headphones I was wearing to come unplugged from the ancient CD player.

Well, was I?

Logically I should be. I should be terrified of them all. It was monsters like them that killed my mother.

But then my mind conjured another image: the caring, compassionate eyes of Carlisle Cullen. Someone I could never imagine keeping in the same company as the monsters that haunted not only my nightmares, but also my waking hours.

Maybe what the doctor had told me was true. Maybe his family was different from the monster that took my mother, my best friend, from me. However, he could also just be a very convincing liar. Who had ever heard as such a thing as a monster with a conscious? Because his story didn't explain his "son"'s hostile behavior toward me my first day there.

What was up with that?

_Are you afraid of me?_

The lyrics echoed in my head. By all rights I should be afraid of him. Every part of my logical mind screamed run.

But I couldn't bring myself to be afraid of him. I didn't find him scary. Instead, I found him intriguing. I wanted to be near him. I wanted to talk to him.

Scarily enough, I wanted _him_. I couldn't picture my life without him in it.

But he was a monster.

And I should have been afraid.

* * *

**A/N: I know-I cheated my way out of the beach scene…I just couldn't write it better than SM did. I also know that it's short again…I am trying to get better about that…**

**Also, the link for the song is on my profile. When I chose it, I had no idea that the theme of the music video was vampires…that was a quirk of nature-a happy little accident.**

**I may update **_**Where Do I Begin? **_**tonight, but it will depend on how I feel. Right now, this day has been just as bad as yesterday because the roof is still leaking. Wanna brighten my day? REVIEW!!**


	12. Ten: Monday Morning

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns **_**Twilight **_**and all its characters. I just came up with the situation they are in.**

**A/N: I love my readers. I really do. I hope you all realize that. It's just that I have had a lot going on in my life recently. But I am here now…and that is all that matters. I hope you all forgive me…**

* * *

I arrived at school really early that Monday morning. I was resolved to speak to Edward Cullen. His face had not left my mind. He occupied my thoughts when I was awake and starred in my dreams when I was asleep.

I had my choice of parking spaces when I arrived. I didn't do anything to change up the natural order of the world. I parked where I usually did. Then I got out of my car and went to one of the picnic tables outside the cafeteria that many students liked to eat at the 3 days a school year it was nice enough to eat outside at lunch.

The bench of the table was wet with dew and the sky was still threatening to rain, though it hadn't started yet. I took out the book I had begun reading the day before, one of my favorites. It was Jane Austen's _Pride and Prejudice_. I found it fitting for my current situation. The two characters started off hating each other, or at least, Lizzie hated Darcy. I suspected Darcy had always loved Lizzie from the first moment.

I had read an entire chapter, lost in the eloquence of Austen's language when I heard people's voices. I looked up to see that the parking lot had nearly filled up in my reading. I stood, hoisting my bag on my shoulder and stuffing my battered book back into it, scanning the lot for the one car I wanted most to see.

But while I was scanning, I found no trace of the silver Volvo. There was a red convertible that stood out and I saw his siblings walking toward me from its direction. He wasn't with them. They seemed to glare at me as they walked past, but I was a foolish optimist and continued to scan the lot for his car.

However, instead of finding the man who haunted my dreams, I found the golden retriever who made my life a nightmare.

"Did you have a good weekend, Bella? I mean, after the beach and all?" Mike asked me as I begrudgingly allowed him to walk me to my first class.

"It was fine," I conceded, not wanting to volunteer any more information than absolutely necessary. Mike wasn't exactly my closest confidant. Not when I knew he had other motivations for treating me the way he did. "Charlie worked on Sunday and I read and working on that Lit paper."

"Oh, yeah, the lit paper. When is that due again?"

"Thursday."

"Seriously? Shoot. I should get started on it, then."

"Probably."

Thankfully we had made it to my building by then, but my happiness was short-lived when Mike reminded me that he would "see me at lunch". I rolled my eyes once I had turned my back to him. I hoped Jessica sunk her claws into him soon. Lassie was getting a little annoying.

I made it through all my classes before lunch just to get through them. I wasn't paying attention to anything my teachers were saying, just going through the motions to make time go by. I couldn't tell you a single thing that I learned that day.

Finally the lunch bell rang and Jessica and I rose from our seats to walk to the cafeteria and eat. As soon as we got there and got into line I took a moment to scan the room to see if Edward had joined his family after all. His seat was empty. My appetite was lost. I only bought a drink.

"I wonder why he's all the way over there…" I heard Jessica muse from behind me. "Maybe a little bit of family drama?"

"What?" I asked, turning to look at her. She didn't meet my gaze so I decided to follow the direction of hers.

There, sitting alone at a table on the other side of the cafeteria than the rest of the Cullen's sat the man who had occupied my thoughts all weekend. There sat Edward Cullen in all his perfection.

And with a single finger, he was beckoning me toward him to join him at his table.

* * *

**A/N: I know it's another shortie, but I promise you will get at least one more chapter this weekend. I am so sorry for the slow updates. Like I said, my life has just been insane recently. **

**Much Love!!**


	13. Eleven: Questions

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns **_**Twilight **_**and all its characters. I just came up with the situation they are in.**

**A/N: You all are so lucky!! I am not…I threw my back out today, which means you get another chapter because I cannot move.**

* * *

"I'll see you later Jess," I said as I quickly moved toward Edward Cullen, successfully evading the barrage of questions that Jessica would have asked me if I had stayed even a moment longer. I knew I would have to answer them eventually, but anytime after now was better than now.

A grin spread across his face as I crossed the room to sit with him. I only did it without fear because I was confident that he was stupid or audacious enough to kill me in public.

I set my drink down in front of me and took a seat, keeping my eyes on the drink, rather than meeting his gaze.

"Not eating today?"

"Not hungry…" I mumbled, still eyeing the table. I lifted my eyes only enough to see the tray of uneaten food in front of him. "You?"

"Not hungry…"he mused. I looked up and met his beautiful topaz eyes. There was a double meaning to his words. I could tell by the coloring of his eyes. I had begun to take notice. Black meant hungry. And these were closer to gold than black.

"That's what your eyes say…but what does your heart want?"

My question seemed to take him by surprise. He ready retort seemed to lodge in his throat, obviously no longer applying. I knew that he knew that I knew. Why the act?

"I'm not a monster Bella. We have worked very hard for a very long time not to be monsters."

"Sure you have," I mumbled. "Tell it to my mother."

"I'm not like the man who killed your mother, Bella. He was a monster."

"Can't argue with you there."

Suddenly, Edward started laughing. This annoyed me. She was my mother after all. How could one of his kind killing her possibly be funny. Maybe monster's had a weird sense of humour.

"What? How is anything surrounding my mother's death funny?"

He stopped laughing abruptly and frowned at me. "I'm sorry. That was rude. I wasn't laughing at you. I was laughing at your friends. They think I am being cruel to you and want to come take you back to them. I hope you realize I am doing nothing to keep you here and you are free to leave whenever you wish."

"Yes."

There was another awkward silence between us.

"Can I ask you something?" he suddenly asked, now staring at the uneaten food on his tray, picking at it absentmindedly.

"You can ask me anything you like. Whether I answer is another matter though." I said with a bit more smug than I was feeling in this situation.

"Would you be willing to go out with me sometime? Maybe we could go to Seattle this weekend?"

This had not been at all what I was expecting. I knew what I wanted to answer. And I knew what I should answer. But the magnetic pull was stronger than reason.

And that was why I said yes.

* * *

**Another shortie…but you got two in one weekend, so just put them together and pretend you got one really long one! I am going to go continue to be immobile. REVIEW to make me feel better!**


	14. Announcements

**Hey guys. **

**Stop the parties if you thought this was an update. It's not. It's an announcement.**

**As none of you may know, I have been pretty busy lately and have therefore neglected to update. Time in the future to accomplish this doesn't seem likely either, that is until I get a break from all my tasks at hand.**

**So I am asking you to be patient with me, knowing your patience will be dually rewarded just as soon as possible.**

**I am so sorry about this. There are just not enough hours in the day.**

**Until then-**

**WB**


	15. Twelve: Plans Change

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns **_**Twilight **_**and all its characters. I just came up with the situation they are in.**

**A/N: I am feeling celebratory because the Tampa Bay Rays are going to the playoffs! And I don't want to study for my Physics test anymore!**

* * *

Friday couldn't come fast enough. I was anxious about going out alone with Edward, but not in the way I should be. It wasn't a frightened anxiety. It was an excited one. Something about him made me want to forget all my fears and all my problems and just be with him.

I ate lunch with him every day that week. Something about him made me lose all reason. He made my head swirl and every time he spoke, my stomach fluttered a bit.

Every single time I went to sit with him, my head screamed at me to turn the other way and run for my life. But I learned to block that part out. I learned that every time he smiled, it didn't have to remind me of the sultry grin the monster kneeling over my mother's body had given me.

By the time we got to Thursday, I couldn't wait for the weekend. It seemed so close I could taste it. I went into the cafeteria and saw him sitting at our usual table in all his beauty and I wondered how any creature so beautiful could ever love me. And I wondered how any part of me, though there were still parts that did, could have ever considered him a monster.

I sat with him automatically, not even glancing at the table where my other friends sat. He seemed to be the center of my life now. With no explanation whatsoever, my universe had shifted readily and permanently to him.

I answered his welcoming smile with one of my own and I felt my cheeks redden under his gaze. Whenever I blushed, he smiled more.

"I have to ask you something very important Bella," he started without a greeting.

I was suddenly and inexplicably worried. Had he changed his mind about us? Had he decided we couldn't be together? The shift in my universe felt permanent. I don't know what would happen to me if he left.

"Okay," I said hesitantly, trying my best to not panic and prepare myself for the worst.

"Did you have your heart set on going to Seattle this weekend?"

Once again he had surprised me with his questioning. I wished I could read his mind. I never knew what he was going to say next.

"N-no, not really." I stuttered, still reeling from my shock. "Why?"

"Well, my sister says that the weather is supposed to be good this weekend and I was wondering if you would be interested in just spending the weekend with me instead."

"Oh!" I said, surprised once again.

"You don't have to," he said, immediately back-peddling, "I just thought you might like to."

"I would love to." I answered, staring at the table, not wanting to meet his gaze. When he didn't say anything, I looked up at him and was met with his beautiful crooked smile, which made me blush.

Which made him smile more.

"I will pick you up on Saturday morning then," he said, his smile not faltering.

I felt my face fall and saw it in his face as his features fell.

"Where are you going?" I asked, a little more anxiety coming through my voice than I hoped it would.

He chuckled. "The weather is going to be good this afternoon through Saturday. My family is going camping."

"Oh. Well, have fun!" I said, trying to sound cheerful, even though the prospect of 36 hours without him seemed impossible.

"I'll pick you up on Saturday morning, Bella."

"Okay."

* * *

**THE RAYS MADE THE PLAYOFFS!  
THE RAYS MADE THE PLAYOFFS!  
THE RAYS MADE THE PLAYOFFS!  
THE RAYS MADE THE PLAYOFFS!**

**If you can't tell, that excited me. So, let's celebrate by reviewing!!**

**If you review, it motivates me to write more!**


	16. Announcements Again

**Hey guys. **

**Stop the parties if you thought this was an update. It's not. It's an announcement.**

**THE GOOD NEWS: I have started writing again.**

**THE BAD NEWS: It wasn't this story!!**

I have a new story called Silent Night...check it out. It's Alice's story, before she became a vampire. I should be picking this story back up when Christmas comes...

Until then-

WB


	17. Thirteen: Waiting

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns **_**Twilight **_**and all its characters. I just came up with the situation they are in.**

**A/N: WOW! I have been away for a long while…and I apologize for that. But I had a very crazy semester. But my finals are over and so I have decided to return to you until sometime after the new year…**

* * *

The rest of the afternoon passed slowly and the next day even more so. It seemed as though time without Edward in my life passed slower than normal. I mused that vampires controlled the space time continuum, though I knew it wasn't true.

Saturday morning dawned and I could barely contain my excitement at getting to see Edward again. I preoccupied myself while I waited for him by starting some laundry I had let pile up since I had arrived. Charlie had gone fishing, as usual.

After I loaded my first load into the ancient washer, I sat down on the couch with the book I was currently reading. Though I tended to favor the classics, but today I was reading the book by Gregory Maguire that had inspired the smash Broadway play, _Wicked_ (**A/N: Which I am actually reading and I highly recommend)**.

The time passed more quickly in the world of books and before I knew it there was a knock on the front door of Charlie's house (though I was getting closer to feeling at home here every day, this was still Charlie's house-not mine).

I got up off the sofa, fighting stiffness from not moving for an hour or more, and made my way to the door as quickly as I could. I still held my book, my index finger marking the page that I had left off on.

I had to remember to breathe when I pulled open the door and saw Edward standing there in all his statuesque beauty. He smiled my favorite crooked smile at me as he took in my appearance.

"Are you ready?" He asked.

It took me a few minutes to process his question and then to remember how to form coherent sentences.

"No. Actually I'm not." He looked puzzled. "I was doing laundry and lost track of the time. I have to put some clothes in the dryer."

"That's okay," he replied, "I can wait. I have all the time in the world."

I placed the book on the sofa after marking my page and began walking to the laundry room, not noticing that he had stopped at the sofa and picked up the book. I only noticed when I came back out with a basket of clothes and he was standing at the back of the sofa flipping through the book.

"_Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West_?" he mused, holding up the book so I could see the cover.

"Yes."

"Feeling particularly wicked lately?"

"Not really." I paused, folding the towels I had removed from the dryer and not looking at him as I continued. "My mom gave it me. I never got around to reading it before…before I moved here."

His hand was on mine as I folded the towel faster than I could have ever conceived possible, even for him. His other hand was under my chin, using his index finger to bring my face up to meet his. As I lost myself in the deep amber pools of his eyes, he wiped the tears away that had been forming in mine.

We finished folding the towels together and then I put them in the linen closet.

"Bella?" he asked rather hesitantly.

"Yes," I answered.

"Would you come and meet my family today?"

The beast in the back of my mind reared. Me in a house full of vampires, a house full of creatures just like the one that had killed my mother. I was suddenly petrified. I tried to remind myself that these vampires were good like Edward, but my mind couldn't conjure the perfect, kind face of my love. Instead, it conjured the face of a killer smiling seductively at me.

"Bella? Don't worry. I won't ever let anything happen to you."

I turned and faced him.

"Okay," I said, shaking.

* * *

**You missed me right? Because I missed you guys. Hopefully I will get some good updates over the holidays for you all to make up for my absence. In the meantime, review my update to tell me how much you missed me!!!**

**Also-check out my new story, Silent Night. It's about Alice...**


	18. Hiatus

**Hey guys. **

**I hate to do this to you all, but I am back at school and am probably going to be faced with another lack of time to write.**

**I am sincerely sorry I didn't get more done on this story while I was on break, but I had forgotten where I was going with it!**

**Please understand that I will try to update whenever possible and wait for me. I promise I will make it worth your while.**

Until then-

WB


	19. Fourteen: Mindreader

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns **_**Twilight **_**and all its characters. I just came up with the situation they are in.**

**A/N: For those of you who don't read **_**Silent Night **_**(SHAME ON YOU!!!), I have decided to update at least one of my stories a week for the semester to keep you all from getting incredibly angry with me. This week, it's **_**Anyone at All**_**'s turn…enjoy!!!**

* * *

I threw open the doors of my closet and surveyed its contents. Though never very fashion conscientious, my mo-Renee had always managed to find me the cutest outfits. However, I had left most of them in Phoenix with the boxes of other things to give to Goodwill. I didn't want them anymore because whenever I wore them, the reminded me of her.

My clothes here were all very modest and simple – and as I surveyed them, I realized that every one of them was something Edward has already seen me in. I grimaced at the clothes as I began to push each top roughly aside, searching for something to dazzle him with for a change.

I finally settled on a blue mock turtle neck sweater that was warm enough for the dreary Forks weather, but not so thick that if the Cullen's house was warm I would be roasting. However, from what I could remember from the novels I had read, crypts weren't exactly known for being saunas.

I immediately chastised myself mentally for the thought. _Stop that Bella. Just because the Cullens are akin to Dracula doesn't mean they sleep in coffins locked away in a crypt. I mean, Edward and his 'siblings' don't show up for school in capes do they?_

_No. _I answered myself. _But, they are going for inconspicuous. Who knows what they do in the privacy of their own dungeon._

_Stop that right now! Imagine how hurt Edward would be if he could hear what you were saying about him and his family. _

"Luckily for me, he can't read minds." I mumbled.

"What was that?" he asked, leaning casually in my doorway, his arms folded across his chest smiling at me.

I whirled around to see him, grasping my chest.

"Oh Edward! You scared me. I thought you were downstairs reading about witches!"

"I came up to see what was keeping you. I'm sorry I frightened you. Are you angry with me?"

"No…at least I won't be if my heart starts beating again."

He chuckled and then looked at me again. "What did you mean, 'Luckily he can't read minds'?"

"Oh, it was nothing. Just mumbling to myself."

"And what if I could?"

"If you could read minds? You've got to be kidding."

"Not at all. Before Charlie left for work this morning, he was thinking about whether or not the pitcher in tonight's Mariners game would be able to play more than 4 innings and whether or not he leaves you alone too much."

I felt my mouth drop open as I stared at him. I couldn't close it.

Charlie had just had a conversation with me the night before about leaving me alone and had been watching a report on the pitcher for today's game. How could Edward have known that? Unless, like he said, he could read minds. Well, after all, he was an unnatural being, why shouldn't he have unnatural qualities.

_Stop it Bella._

"Of course, you were half right in your statement. While, in general, I can read minds, I cannot for the life of me read yours. So don't worry-you're secret thoughts are still that…a secret."

I closed my mouth as I thought it over.

"You ready to go?"

I nodded unable to speak.

When we were in the car on the way to his house, I finally found my voice again.

"Is there something wrong with me that you can't hear me?"

He chuckled to himself. "Oh Bella. I tell you I can read minds…and you think there is something wrong with _you_." He shook his head as he chuckled again.

I opened my mouth to retort his comment, but I was suddenly distracted as the trees broke on the road we were on showing the most magnificent mansion I had ever seen. My mouth remained open to gape at it.

He pulled up in front of the house and in a flash of inhuman speed, was at my door opening it before his clicked shut.

"Bella, welcome to my home."

I wanted to turn and run. I was walking into the lion's den and expecting to come out alive.

Who was I kidding?

* * *

**That's it from me. I hope you all like this chapter. Let me know. Hoepfully, 3 weeks will fly by and you all will get another. If you miss me too much, you can check out my other stories so that you at least get a dose of me weekly!**


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